Nestlé and Raleigh Collaborate Again to Enhance Rural Development in Sabah

Nestlé (Malaysia) Berhad today celebrated the completion of a Community Learning Centre in Kg. Togudon, a village located in Donggongon, within the Penampang district in Sabah. The facility is the Company’s eleventh project with its long-term partner Raleigh Borneo, a UK-based educational development charity, and is a further continuation of its commitment to Creating Shared Value for the societies in which it operates.

The residents of Kg. Togudon and its surrounding areas, who are of Dusun ethnicity, were thrilled with the construction of the Centre as they will now have a formal place to meet and run their community activities. More importantly, they will also have an official kindergarten to provide pre-school education for the young ones.

The Centre will also be able to accommodate English lessons for the adults, as well as provide classes on traditional culture and agriculture amongst others.

The construction of the Community Learning Centre, which began in October, was completed in nine weeks with the help of 36 Raleigh volunteers and some of the local villagers.

“Nestlé believes that having good pre-school education is important, as the learning experience during invaluable formative years will shape and set the path for the children’s future, and with this new Learning Centre, we are giving them a better chance to succeed in their studies and maximise their opportunities for the future,” said Nestlé Malaysia’s Executive Director of Group Corporate Affairs, Puan Zainun Nur Abdul Rauf, at the launch event.

“We hope that this will improve the livelihoods of these communities and contribute to the socio-economic growth of the country,” Zainun added.

“Raleigh, hand-in-hand with the community and in partnership with PACOS, has had a great experience of working and living in Kg. Togudon. We know that the building will provide space for all ages within the community to share knowledge and experiences, pre-school learning and youth programmes. We are, as always, grateful to Nestlé for being a partner in this initiative since 2005,” said Ms. Phili Newell, Country Programme Manager, Raleigh Borneo.

Apart from financial support to fund the construction of the kindergarten, Nestlé also provided the team with Nestlé products as nourishment throughout the 9-week expedition.

Also supporting this project is PACOS Trust, an organisation dedicated towards supporting the rights of indigenous communities in Sabah. PACOS was involved with the initial planning stages of the project, which included assessment of the village and also in identifying and training the teachers to ensure the sustainability of the project.

Situated at the edge of the Crocker Range National Park, Kg. Togudon is a village that has existed for approximately 175 years. It has a population of 500 villagers.

Issued by WestCoast Public Relations Sdn. Bhd. on behalf of Nestlé (Malaysia) Berhad.